Games Growing Up 29: Disney’s Aladdin (SNES)

Who doesn’t love Disney films? They’re some of the most charming films ever, and marvels of modern animation. One of my favorites is Aladdin. Released in 1992, Aladdin is a story of love, magic, and the Arabian Nights. This great film was made into a video game in 1993, with multiple versions made for several different consoles. The most famous versions were the SNES and Sega Genesis versions. The Sega Genesis version is a 2D adventure game, while the SNES version is a 2D Platformer. Today I’m going to be looking at the SNES version, since it’s the one I’ve had more experience with. Does it hold up today?

Aladdin wanders through Agrabah

The gameplay of Aladdin is your standard 16-bit 2D platforming, but is very precise. Aladdin can jog, run, jump, glide with a sheet, grab onto ledges, and swing around. Enemies are defeated by jumping on top of them, but they can also be stunned by having apples thrown at them. Each level in the game is divided into parts, all based different scenes from the movie. The game has a lot of charm and great animation. The cutscenes are great and always a pleasure to watch. The gameplay changes from Platformer to magic carpet ride twice, where Aladdin must navigate Carpet through a cavern with lava, and later take Jasmine through the sky. At the end of a few levels, there are boss fights. These boss fights are very fun and always a joy to go through. The game is quite easy, but I’d rather play something fun and easy than stressful and hard. The only problem I can think of with the gameplay is that the hit detection can sometimes feel a bit off, as sometimes when I have to jump on an enemy, I feel that I most definitely landed on them, but the game doesn’t register that I hit them and I get hurt instead. I find this happening more than I’d like it to. The sprites of the enemies don’t seem to match their hit box, and that’s a real problem. The game makes up for this with it’s beautiful level design and tight controls. Aladdin has the perfect amount of momentum when running and the gliding sheet helps make landings very precise. The controls I have no issue with, as they’re always easy to pick up right when I start the game. The controls and gameplay still hold up well, despite some wonky collision detection.

Aladdin rides Carpet through a cavern

The graphics are pretty good for the most part. The game is very colorful with detailed environments and backgrounds, but the characters themselves look very pixelated. Today, the entire game looks great, besides the characters. I still enjoy looking at the game, but I wish I could see Aladdin’s face. The music of the game is just fantastic. The game borrows some tracks from the Film, and has a few original pieces. I still remember the entire soundtrack, and it’s always a pleasure to hear. Despite pixilation, the graphics and music are still good.

Disney’s Aladdin is a super fun 2D Platformer. I have only two real problems with this game, and neither ruin the experience for me. I still play this game when I’m with friends today. Disney’s Aladdin has aged well.